Journey throvi/h ('uloinhia and Ecuador. 229 



fairly numerous in the forests. On two occasions I saw a 

 pair of them in the tallest trees on the edge of the forest in 

 the evening. I did not recognise our birds as being the 

 rare P. ortoni while we were down in the forests, or I could 

 have skinned more of them, for the Indians often brought 

 them to us for food. Iris brown ; bare skin on the throat 

 yellowish red ; legs and feet bluish red. Local name '^ Puka- 

 pava.^^ 



535. Penelope montagnii (Bp.). 



A male from the w^estern side of Pichincha, at about 7000 

 feet. Bare skin on the throat red. 



536. PiPiLE cuMANENsis (Jacq.) . 



Common on the middle region of the Napo during our 

 stay there, and when the fruits are ripe on the upper river 

 in September they are particularly plentiful. They are then 

 very fat, and the Indians kill them in great numbers and 

 smoke them. Pupil black ; iris dark reddish brown ; skin on 

 the face white, cobalt-blue about the base of the bill, with a 

 kid-like surface; bare skin on the throat dull indigo-coloured ; 

 legs and feet coral-red. The young resemble their parents, 

 except that they lack the metallic lustre on the feathers and 

 the crest is more stone-coloured. The flesh is very rich, with 

 a strong game-like flavour. These birds are often tamed 

 by the Indians, and possess great homing instincts. 



537. Ortalis guttata (Spix). 



These birds were common on the Upper Napo and its 

 tributaries, where we always found them among the thick 

 bushes on the low river-banks, and seldom far into the 

 forests. They appear to only resort to the trees at night, 

 when they keep as near to the ends of the low branches as they 

 can, about 15 to 18 feet from the ground. In their flight, 

 and the flavour of their flesh, they much resemble Partridges. 

 They are great favourites as pets with the Indians, and even 

 the adults when caught quickly become tame and can be 

 given their liberty about the huts. They cross readily with 

 fowls, and for this reason the whites keep them on the 

 Marauon. In the early morning they answer the cocks, when 



